


"The Way He Looks At You"

by rainsoakedshoes



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Bottom Stiles Stilinski, Bullying, I dont know what to tag, Learning Difficulties, M/M, Top Derek Hale, Tutor Stiles, dad derek, well uncle derek really
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-11-07
Updated: 2014-11-07
Packaged: 2018-02-24 11:52:00
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,061
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2580485
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rainsoakedshoes/pseuds/rainsoakedshoes
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After Laura dies her thirteen year old daughter, Talia, starts living with Derek. Stiles is Talia's new tutor. Derek and Stiles fall hard an fast, much to Talia's amusement and disgust. </p><p>***</p><p>Talia shook her head. “I don’t want to suffer through a night of my friends gushing about how hot my uncle is.” To make her point Talia screwed up her face in disgust.<br/>Stiles laughed. “Yeah,” he said. “I can see how that wouldn’t be much fun.”<br/>“It’s bad enough I have to sit through you making eyes at him.”<br/>That made Stiles stop laughing. “What? I don’t – I mean-”</p>
            </blockquote>





	"The Way He Looks At You"

**Author's Note:**

> in this Talia has dyslexia and Stiles has ADD. I don't have any kind of learning difficulties, so if anything I've said in this is stupidly wrong/offensive in anyway then please let me know and I'll edit it right away. 
> 
> also im uploading this at 4am and i cant think of what i should tag right now. if you think i should tag something let me know and i will do it asap.

The young girl sitting across from Stiles dropped her head to the table with a groan. “I’m so stupid,” she complained.

“Hey, hey,” Stiles reached across and put his hand on her forearm. “Talia, listen to me, you’re not stupid, okay? People’s brains are all wired differently and some people have a harder time understanding and retaining information. And besides, no one is good at _everything_. You’ll find something you’re really good at.” Stiles pulled his hand away and flipped a page in the text book.

Talia scoffed. “That’s easy for you to say,” she said. “You’re good at everything, you’re really smart.”

“Talia, look at me,” Stiles said. He continued when the teenager finally met his gaze. “Do you know why I’m here? Why I do what I do?” he asked.

Talia shook her head. “No.”

“I have ADD,” Stiles told her. “I didn’t get diagnosed until I was about your age. I know how much it sucks when your brain isn’t on your side. I struggled a lot with school early on, I couldn’t pay attention and ended up not understanding a lot of what we were learning because I was missing chunks of information. Eventually I found medication and a dosage that works, as well as study techniques and ways to help me focus. I still get distracted easily, as you’ve probably noticed, but I’m a lot more in control than I used to be.”

“I wish there was a pill I could take to make this easier.” Talia slouched back in her seat and folded her arms.

Stiles smiled at her sadly. He remember what it was like being 13 and struggling with course work his friends found easy. ADD and Dyslexia were different disorders, but Talia was obviously feeling as frustrated as Stiles used to.

“Look” Stiles said. “I’ve only been working with you for a couple of weeks, but you’re improving already.”

“Really?” Talia perked up a little at that.

“Yeah,” Stiles nodded. “Definitely. A lot of this is trial and error, trying to figure out how you learn best and how we can help make things easier for you, but I think we’re on the right track.”

Talia beamed at him and Stiles felt his heart swell. She was a great kid and Stiles wanted nothing more than to help make life a bit easier for her. He had only been working with her for two weeks, after taking over for another tutor, but Talia Hale had already worked her way into his heart.

Stiles checked the time on his phone. “I think it’s time to pack up,” he said. “Erica will be here to get you soon.”

“Erica isn’t picking me up today,” Talia told him, shoving her folder into her bag.

“Who’s picking you up then?”

“My uncle.” The _duh_ was left unsaid, but Stiles heard it loud and clear.

“Oh,” Stiles said. “Cool.”

He hadn’t met Talia’s uncle, Derek, yet. The man had been working long hours so Stiles had been meeting with a close family friend, Erica.

“I think he wants to talk to you,” Talia said. “At least I think that’s what he said?”

Stiles chuckled. “I’ll walk you out so if he wants to talk to me he can.”

Stiles and Talia walked out of the library and down to the car park. Talia was glued to her phone the entire time.

“He’s a couple of minutes away,” Talia announced, finally looking up from her phone.

“What’s your uncle like anyway?” Stiles asked.

Talia shrugged. “He’s okay.”

“Just okay?” Stiles laughed.

“I like living with him,” Talia said. “It was weird at first, but he was around a lot when I was growing up so it’s not like I moved in with some stranger.”

Stiles nodded but didn’t press the issue further. He’d heard from the previous tutor that Talia’s mother had died, he didn’t know the whole story, but he knew Talia had been adopted by her uncle. That’s when Talia had moved to the school district Stiles worked for and, after going through two tutors, had wound up with Stiles.

“That’s him,” Talia pointed towards a car that was pulling into the car park.

The man who emerged from the vehicle was not what Stiles was expecting. He was dressed in tight black jeans, boots, and a black leather jacket over a grey t-shirt. He had a weeks’ worth of stubble on his face, and a pair of aviator sunglasses hid his eyes from Stiles’ view. A huge smile broke out across Derek’s face when he saw Talia. Stiles is adamant that his knees did _not_ go weak. Although his stomach may have flipped a little.

Tali!” Derek called out with a wave.

“That’s your uncle?” Stiles asked as they walked over to the car.

“Yeah,” Talia sighed like she was sick of being asked that question.

Derek took his sunglasses off when Talia and Stiles stood in front of him.

“Hi I’m Stiles. Talia’s tutor,” Stiles held out a hand for Derek to shake. “It’s good to finally meet you.”

“Derek. It’s good to meet you too.” Derek clasped Stiles’ hand in a firm shake. His hand was warm and calloused. Stiles noticed that his hand was slightly sweaty.

“Talia mentioned that you wanted to talk to me?”

Derek nodded then turned to his niece. “Tali, can you wait in the car for me?”

“Derek-” Talia started to complain.

“Tali,” Derek said again, firmer this time.

Talia rolled her eyes but opened the passenger door and climbed into the car.

Derek walked a few steps away from the car so Talia couldn’t overhear, Stiles followed.

“I just wanted to make sure everything’s going okay,” Derek said. “You probably know Tali’s had some behaviour issues.”

Stiles nodded. “I heard about what happened with the last two tutors. But we haven’t had any problems at all. She doubts herself a lot though, so I’m trying to work on building up her confidence.” Stiles was still having a hard time believing that Talia had run off two tutors with a bad attitude. She hadn’t said a cross word to him yet.

Derek breathed a sigh of relief. “I think she’s frustrated with how far behind she is, but I’m glad to hear you haven’t had any problems.”

“I think a few outbursts are understandable considering what she’s been through,” Stiles said, choosing his words carefully. “And you know, dyslexia can affect speaking so it’s probably hard for her to express her emotions verbally.”

“I’m glad you get it,” Derek had a soft smile on his face. “The last tutor she – she just didn’t.” Derek looked at the ground. “Can I ask how much you know about what Tali’s been through?”

“Only the bare minimum,” Stiles said. “I know her mom died and that’s why she moved here and is living with you. And I think they only told me that so I would know who her guardian is in case I wanted or needed to contact you.”

Talia, tired of waiting, laid on the horn or Derek’s car. The noise made both men jump.

“Okay!” Derek shouted to Talia, then turned back to Stiles. “I should get her home. It was nice meeting you Stiles.”

“Nice meeting you too, Derek.”

The two of them shook hands again. Derek walked around the side of the car to the Drivers side. He slipped his sunglasses on and flashed Stiles a smile over the top of the car.

Stiles stayed rooted to the spot until Derek had driven out of the car park.

*

Stiles didn’t see Talia again until the following Tuesday. They only had tutoring sessions three days a week; Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays.

Talia’s class was reading _To Kill a Mockingbird_ so they were working on that.

“I don’t like Alexandra,” Talia said.

“Why?”

“Because of the way she treats Atticus,” Talia told Stiles. “She’s family, she should be supporting him.”

“Do you understand why Alexandra and the rest of the town disapprove of Atticus defending Tom Robinson?” Stiles asked.

“Racism,” Talia said simply. Stiles waited for her to continue. “They’re bigoted and have already made up their minds about Tom’s guilt. Atticus is a respectful white lawyer, they don’t understand why he would defend a man like Tom.”

“What do you think of Mrs Dubose?”

“She’s racist and mean, but she’s also kinda nice, like when she left that flower for Jem,” Talia said. “I guess that people can be good and bad. Not everything is black and white.”

Stiles nodded brightly and nodded. “See,” he said. “You do understand what’s happening.”

Talia smiled too, but it quickly turned into a frown. “I’m still behind. My friends are already at chapter fifteen.”

“You’re halfway through chapter twelve now,” Stiles said. “I think you can finish that by the time you see me on Thursday.”

Talia screwed up her face. “I don’t think so.”

“I have faith that you can.”

Talia gave him a small smile and they got back to work.

They were working through symbolism from earlier chapters that were also present in the last couple chapters of Part One, when the door to their private room in the library opened.

Stiles and Talia looked up to see Derek standing in the doorway. He wasn’t wearing the leather jacket this time, just a soft looking green Henley paired with jeans and boots again.

“I finished work early so I thought I’d come in rather than waiting in the car,” Derek explained. “If that’s okay?” he added, looking at Stiles.

“Yeah, that’s fine,” Stiles said. “Sit down.”

Derek sat in the chair next to Talia. He smoothed a hand over Talia’s dark hair.

When they were sitting next to each other Stiles could see how much they really looked alike. They had the same dark hair, the same strong bone structure – although Talia’s was obviously more delicate than Derek’s – and they had the same bright smile that showed off little bunny teeth. Stiles wondered if Derek’s eyebrows were as emotive as Talia’s could be.

“How are you going with the book?” Derek asked.

“Okay,” Talia shrugged.

“She’s doing really well,” Stiles said. “I’ve very impressed.”

Talia blushed and slouched down in her seat, but there was a pleased smile on her face.

“I haven’t read this in so long,” Derek said, picking up Talia’s copy of the book and thumbing through it. “Maybe you can refresh my memory?”

“Actually,” Stiles started.

“Right, sorry,” Derek said, he put the book back down. “You guys are working. I shouldn’t interrupt.”

“No, it’s a good idea for you to refresh your memory about the book,” Stiles said. “That way if Talia gets stuck while reading or doing homework at home she can ask you for help. Plus I was going to talk to Talia about time management more in depth today, and I think it’d be beneficial for you to hear it too.”

Derek nodded. “That sounds good to me.”

“Now anyone who knows me will tell you, I’m the last person who should be giving advice on time management,” Stiles laughed. “But just because I don’t implement these things in my own life doesn’t mean they don’t work.” Stiles turned in his seat to look at Talia. “Because if takes longer for you to read and comprehend things, managing your time so you don’t fall behind too much is vital. I know the last few months haven’t been easy, and it makes sense that your schedule wouldn’t be very structured. But you mentioned that your mom used to make you stick to a strict routine?”

“Yeah,” Talia confirmed. “She used to write these charts that allocated specific times for me to do things.”

“I think that would be a really good thing to bring back,” Stiles said, looking at Derek. “Break down all the homework you have, and put it in order of what’s going to take you the longest to what’s going to take you the shortest amount of time. You’re pretty great at math, right? So you could do math last because it won’t take you as long to finish, or you could do it first; start with the things you find easier and work up to the harder stuff. This is all about finding out what works best for you.”

“Should we allocate a time limit to each subject?” Derek asked. “Like an hour for English? An hour for math?”

“You can,” Stiles nodded. “Just to keep it more structured.” He looked at Talia. “But you need to remember that if you don’t get a task done in an allocated time that’s okay. It’s good to take a break and do something different. If you find yourself getting frustrated with English, move on to your math work, or listen to some music until you’re calm and you think you can continue.”

“What do you think Tal?” Derek looked down at his niece.

“I think we can try time limits,” Talia said.

“I can help you draw up some timetables?” Stiles offered.

“That’d be great,” Derek said. “Thanks.”

Stiles pulled a piece of paper and a pen towards him and set to work dividing it up into squares.

*

By Thursday Talia had started reading chapter thirteen.

And by the following Monday Derek had re-read the entire book so he could talk to Talia about it.

*

Stiles had just gotten home on a Monday night when his phone rang. He dropped the book he was carrying and dug his phone out of his pocket. He didn’t recognise the number on the screen.

“Hello?” Stiles said into the phone.

“Stiles? It’s Derek Hale,” Derek’s voice sounded tinny through the phone. “I got your number from admin with the school, I hope that’s okay?”

“Yeah. Hey Derek, what’s up?”

“You know that cold Tali had on Friday?’ Derek asked.

“Yeah,” Stiles said. “Is she okay?”

“We just got back from the doctors, it looks like it could be something worse than a cold. The doctor thinks it might be bronchitis, they took blood samples and we should get them back in a day or two,” Derek explained. “I just wanted to call you to let you know she’ll be off school for at least this week, and won’t be able to make it to the tutoring sessions.”

Stiles’ heart sank. He knew it was important to keep the sessions regular. It wasn’t likely that a missed week would set her back substantially, but it was better that they not miss anything. Not while she was still learning how to manage her time.

Then Stiles had an idea.

“I could come over to the house,” Stiles offered. “And tutor her there if she’s feeling up to it.”

“I couldn’t ask you to do that,” Derek said. “Besides she could be contagious.”

“You don’t have to ask. I’m offering. If you don’t want me to that’s fine, it’s totally your call. We can just pick up where we left off when she’s better.”

There were a few beats of silence before Derek spoke again. “Do you think it will hurt if she misses the week?”

“If she keeps up with reading at home then she should be fine,” Stiles said. “But you do have to make sure she’s practicing her reading and writing, so she doesn’t get discouraged and give up. Like I said, totally up to you.”

“I’ll talk to Talia and think about it. If she’s feeling well enough we might consider it,” Derek said.

When Derek hung up Stiles saved his number to his contacts.

*

Around lunch time on Tuesday Derek called Stiles again.

“Tal would like it if you’d come over,” Derek said. “She said she can’t miss school and tutoring, she doesn’t want to fall behind even more. But I do have to warn you, she could be contagious. Are you sure you want to come over and risk getting sick?”

“Of course I do.” It wasn’t even a question. He cared about Talia and wanted to make sure she was doing well. And if he was being totally honest, spending more time around Derek was an added bonus.

“Okay, cool,” Derek said. “I should be home around four thirty, so you can come over then? I’ll text you the address.”

“Four thirty sounds great,” Stiles agreed. “I’ll see you then.”

“Bye, Stiles.”

“Bye, Derek.”

*

Talia was the one to answer the door when Stiles knocked. She was dressed in a hoodie and pyjama pants, her hair thrown up in a messy bun. She did look sick, but she smiled brightly at Stiles, and ushered him into the house.

Derek and Talia’s home was a nice sized three bedroom house, with a large living/dining/kitchen area.

Talia led him to the kitchen table where her books and pens were spread out across the table. Stiles noticed a timetable taped to the wall by the table. Talia started coughing as they sat down; it sounded like she was trying to cough up a lung.

“Are you sure you’re feeling up to studying?” Stiles asked. “Maybe you should rest.”

“I’m fine,” Talia said, giving Stiles an impressive eye roll. “Derek been making me do nothing but rest all day.”

“Wow, what a horrible person,” Stiles said in a mock serious voice. “How dare he let you stay home from school and lie in bed all day.”

Talia rolled her eyes again, but it was accompanied by a small smile. Stiles considered it a win.

“Can I get you a drink?” Derek asked from his place in the kitchen.

Stiles looked up. Surprisingly he had barely registered the other man’s presence until he had spoken. Derek was leaning against the far counter, arms crossed over his chest, dressed in a pair of jeans and a dark blue sweater.

“No,” Stiles said. “I’m good. Thanks though.”

Stiles and Talia worked through more of _To Kill a Mocking Bird,_ and some of Talia’s history homework. Derek sat at the table with them, working on his laptop, and occasionally joining in on the conversation.

After a while Talia started coughing again, even worse this time. She was looking really sick.

“Okay,” Stiles said. “That’s enough for today. You really need to rest and get better. I promise the book will still be here when you’re better.”

“You should go take a nap before we eat,” Derek told Talia.

“Derek,” Talia complained. “I don’t want to sleep.”

“He’s right,” Stiles said. “You’re body needs time to get better, and getting lots of rest is the best thing to do.”

Talia scowled at the two men, but gathered up her things and headed out of the room.

“You’re really good with her,” Derek told Stiles when they were alone.

“I was going to say the same thing to you.”

Derek smiled and looked at the floor.

“I mean it,” Stiles continued. “I can’t even imagine what it’s been like, both of your lives got turned upside down and you’re both doing amazingly well.”

“Thanks,” Derek said.

Stiles stood up and gathered his own things up. “I should probably get going,” he said.

Derek paused. He wanted to ask Stiles to stay. But ultimately he nodded. “Yeah,” he said. “Thanks for coming over.”

“Any time.”

*

Stiles only just managed to stop the shopping cart before slamming into one of the shelves. Scott laughed and took control of the cart from Stiles. Allison rolled her eyes and shook her head.

“Shopping cart surfing? Really? You two are ridiculous.” The fond smile on Allison’s face gave her away.

“ _You’re_ the one who invited me to come shopping with you,” Stiles said. To make his point Stiles took a large packet of cookies off the shelf and threw it into the shopping cart.

The three of them rounded the corner to head into the next aisle, and came face to face with Derek.

“Derek!” Stiles greeted with a smile. He turned back to Scott and Allison. “Guys, this is Derek, I work with his niece. Derek this is Scott and-”

“Allison,” Derek finished for Stiles. He was smiling and extended a hand to Allison. “It’s good to see you again Ally.”

Stiles and Scott exchanged a confused look. “You guys know each other?” Stiles asked. 

Allison returned Derek’s smile and took Derek’s hand. “It’s good to see you again too, Derek,” she said, then turned back to the other two men. “Our families knew each other when we were younger.”

“I don’t think I ever properly thanked you for the flowers you and your parents sent after the funeral,” Derek said.

Allison shrugged. “I know it wasn’t much…”

“No, it was a nice touch,” Derek told her. “Tali has a scrapbook full of flowers from every bouquet we got.” Derek checked his phone. “I’m sorry, but I have to go. I’m picking Tali up from a friends’ house. Ally it was nice seeing you, and nice meeting you Scott. Stiles, I guess I’ll see you on Tuesday.” He gave the three of them a smile, then disappeared down the aisle they had just exited.

*

Scott and Stiles were in Scott and Allison’s kitchen, finishing dinner, while Allison and Lydia were in the dining room.

“So,” Stiles said, turning to Scott. “Do you have any idea how Allison knows Derek? I’ve never heard her mention the Hale’s before.”

Scott shrugged. “I have no idea. I know she went to a funeral a while back, she didn’t want me to go with her.”

Scott picked up one of the dishes laden with food and carried it out to the dining room, thinking the conversation was over. For Stiles though, the conversation was far from over.

They had just started eating when Stiles decided to ask Allison herself.

“How do you know Derek anyway?” He tried to sound casual, but the look Lydia gave him let him know he had failed. “I know you said your families were friends but I’ve never heard you mention him before.”

Allison shifted in her seat uncomfortably. “He’s,” she paused. “That’s a story for Derek to tell, I think.”

Stiles opened his mouth to ask why she was being so cryptic, but before he could get a word out Lydia jumped in.

“I found this lovely florist that might be perfect for the wedding.”

And with that the rest of the dinner conversation was dominated by Scott and Allison’s wedding plans; like most of their conversations were.

Stiles didn’t forget about the mysterious connection between Allison and Derek. But he did put it to the back of his mind as he enthusiastically started discussing the plans for Scott’s bachelor party.

*

Stiles was having a less than stellar day and he still had several hours to go before he could go home and get drunk. He decided to send out a mass text to see if anyone was available for coffee.

[Stiles] **_this is a mass text: anyone free for coffee? need a pick me up so i dont jump in front of a train._**

He sent it to the usual suspects; Scott, Allison, Lydia, Isaac, and Kira. Scrolling through his contacts he spotted Derek’s number. Stiles thought “fuck it” before sending the message to Derek as well.

He got the replies he was expecting; everyone was working. However ten minutes after he sent the message his phone buzzed. It was a reply from Derek.

[Derek]: **_I’m free? Unless you didn’t mean to send that to me?_**

[Stiles]: **_I meant to send it to you. do you know Charlies on main? they have excellent muffins._**

[Derek]: **_I know Charlies. I can be there in 15?_**

[Stiles]: **_perfect. i think if I have to spend any more time in this office by myself im going to go insane_**

[Stiles]: **_some might say its already too late tho_**

[Derek]: **_you said it, not me._**

[Stiles]: **_ouch._**

[Derek]: **_im gonna start driving. I’ll meet you at Charlies._**

[Stiles]: **_see you soon_**

[Stiles]: **_drive safe_**

*

It was nearing the end of the lunch hour rush when Derek got to Charlies. He walked in and spotted Stiles sitting at one of the tables almost right away.

Stiles beamed when he saw Derek. Derek’s stomach flipped and he smiled back.

“Hey man,” Stiles said. “Thanks for meeting with me. I hope this isn’t awkward or weird or whatever.”

“Nah, it’s cool,” Derek told him, sitting down opposite him. “I was pretty ready to take a break from work.”

“What do you do anyway?” Stiles asked. “Your hours seem a little…unusual?”

“I actually run a small copywriting firm,” Derek said. “I usually work from home. One of my staff quit a little while back, that’s why Erica was picking up Talia those first couple of weeks. I had to go in and cover the work until we could hire someone else. We’ve mostly caught up now but there’s still a bit of a backlog, hence my weird hours.” Derek caught the odd smile Stiles was giving him. “What?”

“I think that’s the first time I’ve ever heard you call Talia by her full name,” Stiles said. “Normally you call her Tali or Tal.”

Derek nodded, a small, sad smile on his face. “Laura, my sister, she named Tali after our mother. Both of us would just call her Tali for short.”

“You and your sister were close then?” Stiles asked. He knew next to nothing about Laura Hale.

“Yeah,” Derek’s smile was still sad, but brighter now. “We were only ten months apart – Irish twins they call it – we were basically inseparable. Especially after our parents died.”

The waitress came over to get their order. Derek just ordered coffee. Stiles got a coffee and one of their white chocolate and raspberry muffins.

“So do you have any siblings?” Derek asked.

“Nope,” Stiles answered. “I think mom and dad wanted more kids, but mom got sick before they could have anymore. Dad never remarried after she passed, so no half or step siblings either.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know,” Derek said.

“It’s okay,” Stiles waved off Derek’s apology.

“So why were you working in an office?” Derek asked. “I thought you worked in schools all day.”

“Wednesday’s are the day I set aside to do ay paperwork I have, and to set out the plans for the kids,” Stiles explained. “Right now I work as an integration aid in a class room Monday, Tuesday, Thursdays, and Fridays. On Monday afternoons I tutor a boy name Liam in English. And as you know, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday afternoons I’m with Talia.”

“How do you get into work like that?”

“I went to school and got my teaching degree first actually,” Stiles laughed. “I thought I was going to be an elementary school teacher.”

The waitress returned with their coffees and Stiles’ muffin.

“The elementary thing didn’t work out?” Derek asked.

“Never gave it a chance.” Stiles took a sip of his coffee and gasped when it burnt his tongue. “When I was looking for work after graduation I found that the school district was looking for tutors to help kids with learning difficulties. I jumped at the opportunity to do it. I remember how tough school was for me, middle and high school especially.”

“Tal mentioned that you have ADD,” Derek said.

“Yeah,” Stiles nodded. “I was an annoying shit as a kid. Nothing could hold my attention for long, but once something did get my attention I wouldn’t shut up about it. It didn’t matter what it was. I would just talk and talk and talk and talk. I would go off on tangents and change the topic in the middle of a sentence. I never noticed people getting bored.” Derek was giving Stiles a fond smile and shaking his head a little. Stiles snapped his mouth shut. “See? It still happens sometimes. Sorry.”

“It’s okay,” Derek said. “I kinda like hearing you talk. Which is weird since I usually don’t like listening to people talk.” Derek had barely spent any time with the man and he was already so far gone, it was kind of embarrassing.

“Well don’t I feel honoured.” Stiles took another sip of his coffee, more careful this time.

“You should.” Derek smirked at Stiles over the rim of his own coffee cup.

“Can I ask you a weird question?” Stiles asked after a few beats of silence.

“Shoot.”

“I asked Allison exactly how you two knew each other, and she told me it was your story to tell.” Stiles fiddled with the plate his muffin was sitting on. “I guess I’m asking for you to tell the story? If you want to? It’s not really any of my business anyway.” Stiles didn’t want to fuck up with Derek – he actually really liked the man – he didn’t want to make things awkward.

Derek reached out and put his hand over Stiles’, to still Stiles’ fingers that were now drumming on the table top. “It’s okay, Stiles. I’ll tell you.”

“Are you sure?” Stiles was kind of regretting bringing it up.

“Yeah,” Derek nodded. “I appreciate that Allison didn’t just tell you outright, since the full story involves how my parents died.” Surprisingly Derek found himself trusting Stiles. He supposed it was because of how open Stiles was himself, and also how much Talia like him. It generally took Talia a while to warm up to people, and she had latched onto Stiles quickly; Derek saw that as a good sign.

“Shit,” Stiles felt like disappearing. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said anything.”

“It’s okay,” Derek said again. “My parents were killed when Laura and I were teenagers. Allison’s aunt was the one who killed them.”

“How has Allison never mentioned having a murderess aunt?” Stiles said under his breath.

“Do you really blame her?” Derek raised an eyebrow.

“No,” Stiles admitted.

“Anyway,” Derek went on. “Kate, Allison’s aunt, was sent to prison and Laura and I moved around a lot. We both kind of went off the rails for a while there. That’s how Laura got pregnant with Tali, this one night stand in New York. We moved back to California and settled down after that. Laura wanted to be a good mom, and I wanted to be there for her and the baby on the way. Then five or six years ago Allison reached out to us in a letter. Her grandfather had passed away, he was the only one who defended Kate, and Allison wanted to let us know that she and her parents were sorry for everything Kate had done. We were pissed at first, we didn’t want to think about them. But then Laura replied to the letter about a month later. For the next year were talked back and forth, first with Allison then with her parents as well. Then we finally met up with them in person. Allison and her parents came to Laura’s funeral. Chris let me know that if I ever needed anything to call them.”

“Holy shit,” Stiles breathed.

Derek huffed out a laugh. “Yeah. It’s been pretty intense.”

“I’m kinda amazed at how calm you are about it,” Stiles said. “And meeting with the Argents, just wow.”

“I was angry for a _really_ long time,” Derek admitted. “I was furious when I found out Laura had replied to the letter. But she managed to talk sense into me. Holding onto the anger was bad for me, and bad for her. Plus it wasn’t Allison and her parents that killed mom and dad, and they never defended Kate. Allison was too young to really know what had happened at the time anyway.”

Derek was surprised by how much he was actually talking. If he was being honest it scared him a little how easily Stiles broke down his walls.

At some point Stiles and Derek had moved their hands so their fingers were laced. Stiles squeezed Derek’s hand lightly.

Stiles broke off a piece of his muffin with his free hand. He practically moaned when he put the piece in his mouth.

“The muffins really that good, huh?” Derek teased.

Stiles nodded. “Mmmhmm. You totally have to try it.” He pushed the muffin towards Derek.

“I’m fine,” Derek said.

“Try it,” Stiles told him. “Please?”

After a few moments of Stiles pushing the muffin closer to Derek – and almost tipping over his coffee in the process – Derek finally gave in. He tore off a piece of the muffin.

“Oh my god,” Derek said through the small mouthful.

“Told you,” Stiles grinned triumphantly.

Derek just rolled his eyes and broke off another piece of the muffin.

*

It was a week after his and Derek’s coffee catch up (Stiles refused to call it a date, no matter what Lydia said), and Stiles had been travelling around to all the schools in the district to organise paperwork. When he walked into the last high school of the day he was surprised to see Derek. Realistically he knew that it was Talia’s school, but school wasn’t going to be out for another hour, so Stiles couldn’t understand why Derek would be there. Stiles dropped off the paperwork with the receptionist, then walked over to the other man, who hadn’t noticed Stiles yet.

“Hey Derek, what’s up?” Stiles asked. Derek looked up, his brows furrowed in a scowl. Stiles took a step closer to Derek. “Is everything okay?”

Derek sighed. “Tali got into a fight. I’m waiting to see the principal.”

“What was it about?” Stiles sat on the chair next to Derek. “Getting into a fight doesn’t sound like her?”

“She won’t tell me,” Derek said. “Won’t tell anyone.” He had tried to get Talia to talk for ten minutes when he had first arrived. She had stared at him in stony silence the entire time.

“Where is she?” Maybe she’ll talk to me.”

“They put her in a room by herself after she told the teacher to fuck off,” Derek pointed to a closed door down the hall. “I suppose you talking to her can’t do any more damage.”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence.” Stiles patted Derek on the shoulder and stood up again.

Talia was sitting at the table in the small room, a scowl that matched Derek’s perfectly on her face. Stiles closed the door behind him and leaned against it.

“Do you want to tell me what happened?” He asked.

“No.” Talia didn’t look at Stiles.

“Please, Talia?”

There was only one other chair in the room and Stiles dragged it over to the table so he could sit across from Talia.

“You’ll tell Derek,” Talia said.

“Yeah,” Stiles nodded. “I will. Because I know how much he cares about you, and how worried he is. If you don’t tell us what happened we can’t help you.”

Talia sighed. “Those girls were picking on me in class,” she said softly.

“What were they saying?”

“That I’m stupid and retarded because I can’t read properly,” Talia’s voice wavered slightly. “The same stuff they say every class.”

“Tal, how long has this been going on?”

Talia wrapped her arms around herself and shrunk back. “A few weeks,” her voice was barely a whisper. “Ever since they found out that I have a tutor.”

Stiles heart clenched. He had been there. He’d been called those names by students and teachers alike. He knew how bad Talia had to be feeling. “Why didn’t you say something?”

“I told my teacher,” Talia admitted. “She told me to be the bigger person and just ignore it.”

“That is such fucking bullshit,” Stiles said before he could help himself.

“How much trouble do you think I’m going to be in?” Talia asked.

“I don’t know,” Stiles said. “You’re uncle’s waiting to talk to the principal now.”

“Are you going to stay?”

“Yeah,” Stiles nodded. “Of course I’m gonna stay.”

The door opened and Stiles turned around to see who it was. The principal stopped in his tracks when he saw Stiles.

“Mr Stilinski.”

“Hello principal Davis,” Stiles greeted.

“Miss Hale, if you’d join me in my office?” Principal Davis’ tone was less than polite.

Stiles followed Talia and Derek into the principal’s office.

“Mr Stilinski,” Davis said. “I don’t think it’s necessary for you to be here.”

“I think it’s entirely necessary,” Stiles countered. “I’m Talia’s tutor and I think I can spread some light on what’s happened today.”

“I already have a pretty good idea of what happened,” the principal said. “I spoke with the other two girls involved. They say they were talking quietly when Talia threw her books at them. The teacher corroborates this. We’re considering suspension.”

The mention of suspension angered everyone.

“What?” Derek demanded.

“No!” Talia said. “You can’t!”

“That’s ridiculous,” Stiles shook his head and tried to maintain some level of professionalism. “Did the other girls also tell you that they were picking on Talia? That they have been for months? Did the teacher tell you that she knew about the bullying and did nothing to stop it?”

“What?” Derek asked again. “Tali, why didn’t you tell me?”

Talia shrugged. “I thought I could handle it.”

Stiles is pretty sure he saw Derek’s heart break at that comment. He knew his own heart broke.

Derek turned his attention back to the principal. “This school always goes on about how it has a zero tolerance policy for bulling, but when a student is actually being bullied you do nothing? And instead of punishing the bullies you decide to punish the victim?” Derek was livid.

Talia reached out and took her uncles hand. That seemed to help calm Derek a little.

“Look,” Stiles said. “These girls were teasing Talia because of her reading ability, something that is completely out of her control and something she has been working incredibly hard to improve. Suspending her will do nothing but make the situation worse. If she misses school and falls further behind do you think the bullying will get better or worse? Because I can tell you right now, it will get worse.”

“She assaulted other students,” Principal Davis cut in.

“Then punish her,” Stiles said. “You’re right, she shouldn’t be solving her problems like that. Give her detention or something. But do not take her out of the classroom. And if you’re going to punish Talia then you need to punish the girls who were bullying her, and pushed her to this extreme.”

“I also want the teacher involved talked to,” Derek added. “I want her to know that it is unacceptable to ignore a student being bullied.”

“That’s a good idea,” Stiles agreed. “Principal Davis, we’ve had countless meetings and you’ve always spoken about doing everything you can to help students with learning difficulties. Now is your chance to stand by your words.” Stiles folded his arms across his chest for emphasis.

Davis was quiet for a while as he thought about it. “One day’s suspension and two weeks lunch time detention,” he finally said. “And I will be talking to the other girls and figuring out a punishment for them. I will also talk to the teacher and make sure Talia and these girls aren’t seated near each other in the future.”

Derek nodded. “If the bullying keeps happening I will demand serious action,” he said. Derek put a hand on Talia’s shoulder. “Come on. We’re going to go home and have a long talk.”

Talia rolled her eyes but stood up to follow Derek.

*

The next day Stiles got a text from Derek.

[Derek]: **_Tal wants to invite you over for dinner tonight to say thanks for sticking up for her yesterday. If you’re free?_**

That was so cute Stiles had to take a few minutes to compose himself before reply.

[Stiles]: **_that sounds great. im free tonight._**

[Derek]: **_is 6 okay? We’re eating a bit earlier than normal_**

[Stiles]: **_6 works fine_**

[Derek]: **_great. I’ll tell her you’re coming over. See you soon._**

[Stiles]: **_see you soon_**

*

“Oh my God, that smells amazing,” was the first thing Stiles said as Derek led him inside.

“It’s lasagne,” Derek said. “Tali’s cooked it all by herself.”

“I hope you like lasagne!” Talia called out from where she was standing in front of the stove top.

“Do I like lasagne?” Stiles scoffed. “Does a monkey like bananas?”

Both Talia and Derek laughed at that.

“Mom taught me how to make it,” Talia explained. “She wasn’t around much at night, so I made it a lot.”

“Tal! Don’t say it like that!” Derek chastised. He turned to Stiles. “Laura worked as a nurse, the last couple of years she did mostly night shift, it paid better.”

“I get it,” Stiles said. “My dad’s a sheriff and when I was growing up he worked nights a lot. That’s how I learned to cook. Scotty’s mom is a nurse as well but he still sucks at cooking.”

“Sit down,” Derek said, gesturing to the kitchen table.

As he sat, Stiles noticed a backpack and an overnight bag on the floor by the table. “What are the bags for?”

“Talia’s staying at a friend’ place tonight,” Derek explained.

“Oh,” Stiles said. “So you get into a fight and Derek rewards you by letting you go out? What a cool uncle.” Stile winked at Derek who rolled his eyes.

“They’ve had this sleepover planned for weeks,” Derek said. His phone started ringing and he fished it out of his pocket. “It’s Erica, I’ll be right back.” Derek answered the call and left the room.

“Do you ever have friends over here?” Stiles asked Talia. He had realised that he’d heard of Talia going to her friends, but never having friends over.

Talia shook her head. “I don’t want to suffer through a night of my friends gushing about how hot my uncle is.” To make her point Talia screwed up her face in disgust.

Stiles laughed. “Yeah,” he said. “I can see how that wouldn’t be much fun.”

“It’s bad enough I have to sit through you making eyes at him.”

That made Stiles stop laughing. “What? I don’t – I mean-”

“It’s okay,” Talia said. “It’s gross, but the way he looks at you is just as gross.”

Stiles spluttered but before he could get any coherent words out Derek returned.

“Erica wants to take you clothes shopping,” Derek told Talia.

Talia’s face lit up at the sound of new clothes. “Really?”

“Yep,” Derek nodded. “She thinks the best way to get revenge is to – and I quote – make those bitches jealous. And apparently you do that by looking better than them? I don’t know.”

Derek and Talia started to serve up the food.

“Can I help?” Stiles offered.

“No, we’re good,” Derek said. “So, Tal, do you want Erica to pick you up tomorrow and you can go shopping?”

“Of course!” Talia almost dropped the plate she was holding to give Derek a one armed hug.

“You really are terrible at this whole punishment thing,” Stiles said.

Derek just shrugged. “I can’t get mad at her for sticking up for herself.”

Stiles nodded in understanding.

Dinner was rather uneventful, mostly Talia talking about what she and her friends had planned. The food was really good, a fact that Stiles made sure to tell Talia multiple times.

Although Talia’s words kept echoing in Stiles’ mind

_The way he looks at you is just as gross_

Did that mean Derek was looking at Stiles like he wanted to push him against a wall and kiss him? Because that’s certainly how Stiles was looking at Derek. Stiles had basically wanted to kiss Derek since their first meeting, but since their coffee not-a-date date the feeling had intensified. He realised that he _really_ liked Derek.

Throughout the meal Stiles would look up to find Derek looking at him. Or, if Derek wasn’t already looking at him, Derek would look up soon after Stiles looked at him. Every time they met eyes they would both look away, smiling at their plates. Talia pretended not to notice them.

Soon it was time for Talia to clean up the dishes and make sure she had everything ready before her friends’ mom came to pick her up.

“You’re making her do the dishes?” Stiles asked. “What happened to the good ol’ fashioned ‘you cook; I’ll clean’?”

“This is the ‘punishment’ portion of today,” Derek said. “I think it’s pretty fair. All she has to do is pack the dishwasher.”

When there was a knock on the door Talia practically sprinted out of the kitchen and down the hall to answer it. She returned with a girl her own age, and an older woman who must have been the other girls’ mother.

“How are you Derek?” the woman greeted.

“I’m good,” Derek said. “How are you, Nat?”

“I’m good, too.” Nat looked at Talia who had her bags in her hands. “You ready Tal?”

“Yep!” Talia nodded.

The two teenagers started heading for the door and Derek cleared his throat. “Forgetting something?” he asked.

Talia turned around and jogged back over to Derek. Her hands were full, but she wrapped on arm around him in a quick hug. “Love you, Derek.”

“Love you too, Tali,” Derek smoothed a hand over Talia’s hair. “Have fun, and be good.”

“She’s always good,” Nat reassured him.

Derek walked the three of them to the door. “Now my friend Erica will be picking Tal up in the morning,” he told Nat. “They’re going shopping.”

“Ooh, lucky!” Nat said as they walked out the door.

“Bye Tal!” Derek called again before closing the door.

When Derek walked back into the kitchen Stiles was standing there awkwardly, unsure of what to do.

“I guess I should go too,” Stiles said.

“You can stay,” Derek told him, hoping it didn’t sound as desperate out loud as it had in his head. “I have beer in the fridge, do you want one?”

Stiles nodded. “Yeah. Beer sounds great.”

They both walked over the fridge and Derek pulled out two bottles. He uncapped both of them, then handed one to Stiles.

Derek was standing in front of the fridge and Stiles was leaning against the counter next to it, there was barely a foot between them.

Finally Stiles was the one to move first. After a muttered “fuck it” Stiles crowded Derek up against the fridge and kissed him. Derek was still for a moment, shocked that it was actually _finally_ happening, then he was kissing back.

“Bedroom?” Stiles panted against Derek’s mouth when they broke apart for air.

Derek nodded and grabbed Stiles by the wrist. They only made it halfway down the hallway before Derek pinned Stiles against the wall and kissed him again.

By the time they actually made it into the bedroom, both men were shirtless and Stiles had managed to undo Derek’s jeans.

Derek pushed Stiles down onto the bed then stepped back to completely rid himself of his clothes. Stiles’ jaw dropped at the sight of Derek’s thick, uncut cock, already half hard. How was it even possible for someone to look that good? Stiles quickly worked to get his own pants and underwear off.

Once both of them were naked Derek knelt on the bed between Stiles’ legs. He pressed a line of wet, opened mouthed kisses down Stiles’ chest and stomach. Derek took the head of Stiles’ cock into his mouth. He enjoyed the taste of Stiles before taking more of him into his mouth. Stiles threaded his fingers through Derek’s hair as Derek’s cheeks hollowed as he began to suck. Derek hand his big hands splayed across Stiles’ thighs, holding the other man still and stopping the small, abortive thrusts Stiles’ hips were making from messing up his rhythm. Derek took one hand off Stiles’ thighs, ghosted his fingers over Stiles’ balls, and then worked a finger between Stiles’ cheeks. Stiles gasped when he felt the dry burn of Derek’s finger pressing against his hole.

“Please,” Stiles moaned. “Please, Derek.”

Derek pulled away from Stiles’ cock; a string of drool and pre-come connecting them until it snapped. “You sure?” Derek asked.

Stiles nodded down at Derek, pupils blown wide with lust. “Please,” Stiles repeated. For emphasis he thrust back against Derek’s finger that was still circling his entrance.

Derek nodded back at Stiles and stood up. On slightly shaky legs he made it over to the bedside table. He pulled out lube and a condom. Derek put the lube down on the bed and tore open the condom, and put it one. He went to pick up the lube again to see that Stiles had beaten him to it.

Stiles had slicked up two of his fingers and was working one into himself. Derek had to brace himself on the bedside table to stop his knees from giving out at the sight.

Derek took the lube back from Stiles. “On your hands and knees,” he commanded.

Stiles followed the order without complaint. He removed his finger from his ass, rolled over, and then raised himself up on his hands and knees.

Derek settled back down in between Stiles’ legs. He slicked up his own fingers and pressed one into Stiles. By the time Derek had worked three fingers into Stiles, the younger man was thrusting back against Derek’s hand and begging for more.

Derek thrust into Stiles as slowly as he could manage. Even with the prep Stiles was still incredibly tight around Derek. Once Derek had bottomed out, Stiles moved his hips back; showing that he was okay for Derek to fuck him.

The thrusts started out slow; Derek wanted to take his time and enjoy it. But the feeling of Stiles, hot and tight around him, and the sound of Stiles’ moans in his ears, was too much and he lost all resolve. Derek draped himself over Stiles’ back, setting his teeth against Stiles’ shoulder, and fucked into him at an almost brutal pace.

Stiles was panting a moaning; a string of swears and nonsensical pleading left his mouth. He was hard, leaking pre-come over Derek’s bed covers. Derek had one arm wrapped around him, his hand on Stiles’ chest. Derek’s other hand made its way from Stiles’ hip to his cock.

“Derek, fu- _fuck_ ,” Stiles gasped out as Derek started jerking him off.

“You going to come?” Derek asked against Stiles skin. His voice was raw and desperate, like he was close as well.

Stiles nodded under Derek. “Yeah.” He could feel his orgasm rising, white hot, in his belly, threatening to pour out of him any moment.

“Come.”

Stiles almost missed the word that Derek whispered into his skin, his own blood pounding in his ears and the sound of skin on skin, deafening. Stiles came, spilling out over Derek’s hand and the bed.

Derek’s own orgasm crested and broke, washing over him as he felt Stiles go boneless and pliant under him.

It was a few moments before Derek could coordinate himself to pull out of Stiles. He took the condom off and tied it off. He disappeared into the ensuite bathroom to throw out the condom and returned with a wet washcloth. He cleaned the lube and come off of himself and Stiles, then pulled the soiled top blanket off the bed; he’d deal with it in the morning.

Derek and Stiles lay on top of the sheets; Derek curled around Stiles.

“Holy shit,” Stiles said. It was the first thing he had said since he came.

Derek chuckled. “Yeah.”

Stiles glanced at the alarm clock on Derek’s bedside table. “It’s still so early,” he said in disbelief.

“Good,” Derek kissed Stiles’ shoulder. “Then we have all night to have more fun.”

*

It was after lunch when Stiles and Derek finally dragged themselves out of bed for food. They were sitting at the kitchen table when they heard the front door open. The two men looked at each other in horror.

“Shit,” Derek whispered. “That’ll be Tali and Erica.”

The thought of hiding went through Stiles’ mind, but it was too late. Talia came bounding in, followed by a blonde woman, her heels clicking on the tiles.

Stiles and Derek looked at Talia like deer caught in the headlights. Instead of being freaked out, Talia just smiled and turned to face Erica.

“Told you!” the teenager said. “You owe me twenty bucks!”

Erica sighed and put the bags she was carrying on the ground. “You couldn’t have held it for one more night?” she complained to Derek.

Derek groaned and buried his head in his hands. “I’m going to pretend you’re not making bets about my sex life.”

“Hey, Talia,” Stiles gave Talia a weak smile, she just smirked in return. “Hi Erica.” Stiles turned his attention to the blonde.

“Nice to see you again, Stiles,” Erica said. “You know, lately I've been hearing a lot about what you've been up to. From both of these two.”

Derek groaned again.

Talia sat down at the table with them. She looked from her uncle to Stiles and back again. “So does this mean you’re boyfriends, or what?” she asked.

Derek looked back up and shared a look with Stiles while Erica muffled a giggle.

“We, uh,” Derek didn’t know what to say.

“Something tells me they didn’t get much chance to talk last night,” Erica said.

“Shut up, Erica,” Derek snapped, but there was no heat behind his words.

Stiles shrugged at Derek. “I’m game if you are,” he admitted in a quiet voice.

Derek looked at his niece who was waiting expectantly. “Yeah,” he said. “We’re dating.”

“Good,” Talia nodded her approval.

Without another word Talia stood up and dragged Erica down the hallway to her bedroom, talking about how she needed Erica’s opinion on an outfit.

“You really want to be with me?” Stiles asked once he and Derek were alone.

Derek nodded. “I mean, Talia kinda rushed me there, but I was planning on asking you out officially anyway.”

Stiles smiled brightly and leaned over to kiss Derek.

“Gross,” came Talia’s voice and the two men sprang apart. “You’re not allowed to do that in front of me,” Talia decided.

“I second that,” Erica said.

Stiles laughed. “Don’t worry,” he said. “I promise we’ll keep all the mushy stuff behind closed doors from now on.”

Much to their credit they did manage to keep to that promise. Mostly.

**Author's Note:**

> i spend most of my time on [tumblr](http://heavenlyhale.tumblr.com/) crying about Derek Hale


End file.
